HR327 - Posthumously paying tribute to the life and legacy of Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez.

      H.R. No. 327       R E S O L U T I O N          WHEREAS, The House of Representatives of the State of Texas   joins the citizens of Texas in remembering the life and legacy of   Medal of Honor recipient Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and the   loaning of his Medal of Honor to the new National Medal of Honor   Museum in Arlington; and          WHEREAS, A native Texan, Master Sergeant Benavidez was born   on August 5, 1935, in Lindenau, the son of a sharecropper; orphaned   at an early age and raised by relatives, he dropped out of school at   the age of 14 to work in the fields before enlisting in the U.S. Army   in June 1955; and          WHEREAS, While on his first tour of duty in Vietnam, this   admirable soldier was injured by a land mine, and though doctors   feared he might never walk again, Master Sergeant Benavidez   recovered fully and returned to Vietnam with the Green Berets, an   elite Special Forces unit; and          WHEREAS, On the morning of May 2, 1968, while assigned to the   Loc Ninh base in South Vietnam, then-Sergeant Benavidez learned   that 12 members of a Special Forces reconnaissance team were   surrounded by enemy troops inside Cambodia and under heavy fire;   this heroic Texan courageously volunteered for the evacuation   mission to aid in the rescue of his fellow soldiers; and          WHEREAS, Though intense small-arms and antiaircraft fire   made the rescue operation tremendously dangerous, Sergeant   Benavidez jumped from the helicopter into enemy gunsights; even   before he reached the stranded team's position, he had been wounded   in his right leg, face, and head, yet despite his painful injuries,   Sergeant Benavidez carried the wounded men to the waiting   helicopter and provided protective fire to cover the remaining   crew; and          WHEREAS, The mission grew more complicated as Sergeant   Benavidez retrieved classified documents from dead and wounded team   members, and he worked quickly to secure them despite sustaining   more severe wounds from gunshots to his abdomen and grenade   fragments in his back; while attempting takeoff, the pilot was   mortally wounded, and the helicopter crashed; despite the chaos   around him, Sergeant Benavidez freed those aboard from the wreckage   and established a defensive perimeter under increasing enemy   gunfire and grenade attacks; and          WHEREAS, Acting as a medic, directing by radio the fire from   gunships overhead, and even engaging in hand-to-hand combat with   the enemy, Sergeant Benavidez bravely weathered a harrowing six   hours in hell and saved the lives of eight men through his   leadership and action; he had been clubbed, shot, and bayoneted,   yet Sergeant Benavidez prevailed, and when his actions were praised   as awesome and extraordinary, he defined them only as duty; and          WHEREAS, For his exceptional valor, Sergeant Benavidez was   awarded the Distinguished Service Cross; then on February 24, 1981,   44 years ago today, Master Sergeant (Ret.) Roy P. Benavidez was   presented with the Congressional Medal of Honor by President Ronald   Reagan; and          WHEREAS, Even after his retirement from the military, he   continued to serve his country by devoting his time and energy to   veterans groups and by visiting schools to speak to youths on   critical issues such as courage, commitment, education, faith,   patriotism, and staying away from drug use and gangs; and          WHEREAS, Though this brave soldier died on November 29, 1998,   his widow Hilaria "Lala" Coy Benavidez and their three children,   son Noel and daughters Yvette and Denise, have carried on Master   Sergeant Benavidez's legacy by remaining active in their community   with various civic organizations and volunteering their time with   the Boy Scouts of America, which paved the way for six of Master   Sergeant Benavidez's grandsons to earn the rank of Eagle Scout; and          WHEREAS, On February 6, 2011, the late Hilaria "Lala" Coy   Benavidez generously loaned her husband's Medal of Honor to the   Ronald Regan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, where   it was on display for tens of thousands of museum visitors to see   and learn about the life and legacy of Master Sergeant Roy P.   Benavidez; and          WHEREAS, On January 3, 2025, the children of Master Sergeant   Roy P. Benavidez traveled to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library   to take part in a handoff ceremony, which consisted of the Ronald   Reagan Presidential Library handing over Master Sergeant Roy   P. Benavidez's Medal of Honor to his three children so that it can   return home to Texas; and          WHEREAS, The children of Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez   have generously loaned their father's Medal of Honor to the new   National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington, where it will be one of   several Medals of Honor from living and deceased recipients that   have been either donated or loaned to the new museum and will be on   display for the public to see; and          WHEREAS, A deserving recipient of the highest and most   prestigious military decoration of valor, Roy Benavidez   demonstrated extraordinary courage in the line of duty, and he will   forever be remembered with great admiration; now, therefore, be it          RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas   Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life and legacy of Master   Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and extend to his family sincere   appreciation for their generosity in sharing his inspiring story   with others; and, be it further          RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be   prepared for his family as an expression of deepest gratitude from   the Texas House of Representatives and that when the House adjourns   this day, it do so in memory of Master Sergeant Roy P. Benavidez and   his wife Lala.     Kitzman     ______________________________   Speaker of the House                 I certify that H.R. No. 327 was adopted by the House on   February 25, 2025, by a non-record vote.     ______________________________   Chief Clerk of the House